Many states and localities are beginning to announce their minimum wage increases for 2027. And if last week’s announcement from California seemed bad, take a look at Denver.
The city recently announced its minimum wage will rise to $19.84 per hour next year, up from the current $19.29. But recent government data shows Denver’s aggressive minimum wage policy over the last several years has taken a toll on the city’s restaurants and their workers, making the announced hike particularly concerning.
The latest increase continues a rapid rise in the city’s wage floor that began after Colorado lawmakers gave local governments the power to set their own minimum wages in 2019. Since then, its minimum wage has climbed nearly 80%, from $11.10 in 2019 to $19.84 next year, while its tipped minimum wage has nearly doubled over the same period.
The consequences of that rapid rise are becoming increasingly difficult to ignore, particularly for Denver’s restaurant industry. The latest Bureau of Labor Statistics quarterly data show Denver County has experienced three straight years of restaurant job losses. Following the pandemic, recovering employment at restaurants peaked at roughly 21,100 jobs in December 2022. By December 2025, the industry had lost more than 2,200 jobs.
That amounts to a 5.9% decline in restaurant employment, more than triple the rate of decline experienced statewide, which has also mandated annual increases to the minimum wage.
Rather than continuing its post-pandemic recovery, Denver’s restaurant industry has been moving in the opposite direction.
The warning signs extend beyond employment numbers. Denver restaurants themselves are disappearing.
Axios Denver reported that a staggering 82% of Colorado restaurant closures tracked during the first half of 2026 occurred in Denver. Rising labor costs have become a major concern for operators, with the city and state’s tipped minimum wage increases cited as a “major pain point.”
Other industry research echoes those concerns, finding labor costs were the most frequently cited challenge among restaurant operators. Combined with rising rent and food costs, these pressures have reportedly made Denver restaurants more expensive to operate than even New York City.
Denver’s restaurant industry has already lost thousands of jobs, businesses are closing, and operators are sounding the alarm about rising labor costs. Pushing the city’s minimum wage even closer to $20 an hour risks making a bad situation worse for the very restaurants and workers these policies are supposed to help. Local leaders should reevaluate the city’s approach before pushing more restaurants to the brink.